Studies show that business coaching can make or break your business during this recession–or any recession. We’re not just saying this. Studies performed by Cogent Research (with more facts and figures here) show that businesses don’t just survive, but actually thrive during a recession–at least they do when they are coached to follow the kinds of procedures that ActionCOACH teaches its clients.

Today, I’d like to share with you, and share more than just statistics. As we go over these statistics, I’d like to share with you some of the things we recommend to our coaching clients. That way, even if you don’t employ our services, you can help your business thrive in this recession.

After all, while it’s the point of any business to turn a profit, we’re also interested in helping people (we’d have to find new jobs, if we weren’t). Anything I can share with others on this blog, is likely to help the nation get back on its feet that much more quickly.

But first, it will help to take a good look at the situation we’re in. You can’t effectively deal with the world around you if you don’t know how it’s effecting you. And how it is effecting us is not pretty.

The Crushing Truth about the Great Recession and Uncoached Businesses

You don’t have to be told that many businesses have literally crumbled from the inside during this recession. Chances are, you’ve seen some close friends or associates go through some pretty tough times because of the economy.

So you shouldn’t feel bad if you’ve felt the chill creeping up your own spine, when you wonder if you could be next. Even the best and bravest among us are subject to the worry imposed on us by a coughing economy.

After all, statistics are less than encouraging for uncoached businesses. Dun & Bradstreet reports that the U.S. economy has stalled after what started off as a healthy comeback in 2010.

Small business owners have been hit particularly hard. The Bureau of Labor Statistics reports that the number of “incorporated self-employed” (i.e. business owners, entrepreneurs, etc.) is down nearly 600,000 form what it was pre-recession–a number that otherwise should have gone up.

The figures look even worse when you take into account the “unincorporated self-employed”–many of whom run their local businesses as a single proprietorship or partnerships. This nearly doubles the figure above, to almost 1.2 million fewer American business owners than there were before the recession.

These figures are overall figures; when you take into account the number of new businesses that start up every year, the number of businesses destroyed by The Great Recession leaps into the staggering millions.

Statistics Show Hope for Those Who Take Advantage of Coaching

Fortunately, recession doesn’t mean the end of every business–and it doesn’t have to spell the end for yours, either. Businesses that learn how to become more internally sound and outwardly competitive won’t just survive a recession better. They can actually increase their growth during a recession more than they would be able to during easier times!

This is in part due to the fact that other businesses will be struggling–and dying–while you are thriving. The Cogent Research study shows that:

74% of ActionCOACH coached businesses increased sales last year, nearly twice the number of the 43% of non-coached businesses who increased sales.

What about our coaching helped businesses increase their sales. We help executives and business owners learn to look at where their marketing and ad dollars are paying off–and where they’re just throwing money away. This kind of knowledge can literally make or break a business.

Of course there are other factors. One thing we’ve noticed is the kind of confidence that spreads through a company when the top level executives are confident in their path. All other things being equal, a confident sales force is the most effective type of sales force.

After all, you’ve probably deal with sales agents who practically reeked of desperation. You’ve also met a few who seem relaxed, confident, happy. Who are you more likely to buy from?

53% of ActionCOACH coached businesses increased their profits–compared with 35% of non-coached businesses.

Again, there are many factors that play a part in this. All those factors mentioned above, plus a better eye for internal spending (coached executives are often surprised to find out where money has been “leaking” from!), working through a sturdy business plan, more realistic budgets, and more efficient workflow procedures all play a part.

A good business coach won’t just help you implement all of these things. He or she will teach you how to do them for yourself!

Profit increases averaged $160,000 per company–with an average ROI of $10.80 in net profit for every $1 spent!

Of course, this is only the average. Individual profit increases can vary with the size and type of your business. But an ROI of nearly 11:1 should look good to just about any business!

97% of coached businesses would recommend coaching to other small and medium-sized enterprises.

We think this statistic speaks for itself!

What Will a Good Coach Do for Your Business?

A good coach will guide you through the processes to make your business more profitable, more efficient–even more enjoyable.

Steps like 12-month budgets and written business plans can help you survive and even thrive during a recession. These are two things we help clients create, if they haven’t already (and many have not). They help any business maintain stability and focus during tough times.

We also teach executives and business owners to pay more attention to workflow procedures that may be costing time and money. Another focus is learning how to spot and pay the right kind of attention to KPI’s (Key Performance Indicators). This helps executives decide where to best spend every dollar (among other things).

ActionCOACH is the world’s number one coaching firm, with over 1,000 offices in 39 countries. Contact us to learn how we can help you thrive in 2012.